United Natural Foods, Inc. (UNFI) Given Consensus Rating of “Hold” by Analysts

Shares of United Natural Foods, Inc. (NASDAQ:UNFI) have been given an average rating of “Hold” by the twenty-three analysts that are covering the stock, Marketbeat.com reports. Four investment analysts have rated the stock with a sell rating, eleven have assigned a hold rating and seven have issued a buy rating on the company. The average twelve-month price target among brokers that have covered the stock in the last year is $44.83.

UNFI has been the topic of several recent research reports. Jefferies Group restated a “hold” rating on shares of United Natural Foods in a research report on Monday, October 16th. Susquehanna Bancshares initiated coverage on United Natural Foods in a research report on Monday, October 16th. They set a “neutral” rating and a $43.00 price target on the stock. Royal Bank of Canada lowered United Natural Foods from a “sector perform” rating to an “underperform” rating and reduced their price target for the stock from $36.00 to $34.00 in a research report on Tuesday, October 17th. TheStreet lowered United Natural Foods from a “b-” rating to a “c+” rating in a research report on Friday, October 27th. Finally, Goldman Sachs Group restated a “neutral” rating and set a $41.00 price target on shares of United Natural Foods in a research report on Tuesday, November 14th.

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In related news, CEO Steven Spinner sold 49,026 shares of United Natural Foods stock in a transaction that occurred on Tuesday, January 2nd. The stock was sold at an average price of $49.49, for a total transaction of $2,426,296.74. Following the sale, the chief executive officer now directly owns 102,637 shares in the company, valued at $5,079,505.13. The transaction was disclosed in a filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available at the SEC website. Also, insider John Michael Hummel sold 1,773 shares of United Natural Foods stock in a transaction that occurred on Tuesday, December 12th. The shares were sold at an average price of $49.42, for a total value of $87,621.66. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Over the last quarter, insiders sold 103,191 shares of company stock worth $5,140,875. Corporate insiders own 1.40% of the company’s stock.

Hedge funds and other institutional investors have recently added to or reduced their stakes in the stock. Pictet Asset Management Ltd. boosted its position in shares of United Natural Foods by 22.6% during the third quarter. Pictet Asset Management Ltd. now owns 319,191 shares of the company’s stock valued at $13,275,000 after purchasing an additional 58,779 shares in the last quarter. Goldman Sachs Group Inc. boosted its position in shares of United Natural Foods by 91.8% during the second quarter. Goldman Sachs Group Inc. now owns 420,559 shares of the company’s stock valued at $15,435,000 after purchasing an additional 201,291 shares in the last quarter. Vanguard Group Inc. boosted its position in shares of United Natural Foods by 0.6% during the second quarter. Vanguard Group Inc. now owns 4,289,244 shares of the company’s stock valued at $157,415,000 after purchasing an additional 24,028 shares in the last quarter. Dynamic Technology Lab Private Ltd bought a new stake in shares of United Natural Foods during the third quarter valued at approximately $3,205,000. Finally, Kalos Management Inc. bought a new stake in shares of United Natural Foods during the third quarter valued at approximately $652,000.

United Natural Foods (UNFI) opened at $44.08 on Friday. The company has a current ratio of 2.25, a quick ratio of 0.82 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.25. United Natural Foods has a 1 year low of $29.53 and a 1 year high of $52.69. The stock has a market capitalization of $2,220.00, a P/E ratio of 17.09, a P/E/G ratio of 2.46 and a beta of 1.41.

United Natural Foods (NASDAQ:UNFI) last posted its quarterly earnings results on Thursday, December 7th. The company reported $0.60 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, hitting the consensus estimate of $0.60. United Natural Foods had a return on equity of 8.04% and a net margin of 1.39%. The business had revenue of $2.46 billion for the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $2.39 billion. During the same period last year, the company earned $0.58 EPS. analysts predict that United Natural Foods will post 2.82 earnings per share for the current year.

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United Natural Foods Company Profile

United Natural Foods, Inc is a distributor and retailer of natural, organic and specialty products. The Company’s segments include Wholesale and Other. The Wholesale segment is engaged in the national distribution of natural, organic and specialty foods, produce and related products in the United States and Canada.